FOX Gets a Little Sugar on New Year's

College football lifted FOX to a ratings win on the first day of 2008, while NBC got decent numbers from the debut of a new "Biggest Loser."

FOX averaged a 7.4 rating/11 share in primetime, with those numbers likely to change both because of its live telecast and because figures for the 10 p.m. hour were unavailable. NBC drew a 6.7/11 to take second. CBS, 5.5/9, came in third, and ABC took fourth with a 4.0/6. The CW trailed with a 1.0/2.

In the adults 18-49 demographic, FOX's 4.9 rating led the way. NBC scored a 4.3 for second. ABC, 2.2, was third, followed by CBS, 1.9, and The CW, 0.5.

An "NCIS" rerun, 7.4/11, gave CBS the lead at 8 p.m. FOX's Sugar Bowl pre-game show and the first few minutes of the game earned a 5.9/9. The conclusion of the Rose Bowl and "Just for Laughs" averaged 5.7/9 for ABC. "The Biggest Loser" began a new cycle with a 5.4/8 for NBC, while The CW aired a repeat of "Crowned."

The Sugar Bowl, featuring Georgia and Hawaii, posted an 8.8/13 for FOX at 9 p.m. "The Biggest Loser" improved to 6.9/11 in its second hour. A repeat of "The Unit" on CBS took third, beating the season premiere of ABC's "According to Jim," which averaged 3.1/5 with two episodes. The CW got a 1.0/2 from a "One Tree Hill" rerun.